20:
107:
plaintive tributes to extinguished worth. In
Philadelphia, the departure of a child is a circumstance which is not more surely followed by a burial than by the accustomed solacing poesy in the PUBLIC LEDGER. In that city death loses half its terror because the knowledge of its presence comes thus disguised in the sweet drapery of verse.
106:
In
Philadelphia they have a custom which it would be pleasant to see adopted throughout the land. It is that of appending to published death-notices a little verse or two of comforting poetry. Any one who is in the habit of reading the daily Philadelphia LEDGER must frequently be touched by these
72:. The genre achieved its peak of popularity in the decade of the 1870s. While usually full chiefly of conventional pious sentiments, the obituary poets in one sense continue the program of meditations on death begun by the eighteenth-century
524:
545:
145:
The deaths of children and young adults were particular objects of inspiration to the obituary poets, who memorialized them with sentimental verse.
266:
of the United States, and the sentimental tales told by the obituary poets showed their abiding vitality a hundred years later in the genre of
444:
258:
The obituary poets were, in the popular stereotype, either women or clergymen. Obituary poetry may be the source of some of the
98:
Obituary poetry constituted a large portion of the poetry published in
American newspapers in the nineteenth century. In 1870,
384:
153:
from
Michigan who published several volumes of poems mostly on obituary subjects, was a well known exponent of the genre.
465:
111:
and collected examples, such as the following, occasioned by the death of Samuel Pervil
Worthington Doble, aged 4 days.
205:
533:
431:
380:
341:
320:
313:
Mortal
Refrains: The Complete Collected Poetry, Prose, and Songs of Julia A. Moore, The Sweet Singer of Michigan
355:
161:
of Grief", was another well known exponent; he was one of the chief authors of the verse appearing in the
163:
209:, was inspired by the genre, and in large measure by Moore's verse. Twain's was by no means the only
578:
573:
54:
519:
368:
568:
64:
that tells the story of the demise of its typically named subjects and seeks to console their
448:
411:
399:
154:
267:
8:
214:
529:
481:
427:
376:
337:
316:
476:
419:
263:
168:
73:
61:
308:
146:
82:
58:
53:
that had its greatest popularity in the nineteenth century, especially in the
562:
259:
158:
16:
Art of creating poems that commemorate a person's or group of people's deaths
502:
222:
77:
46:
171:, while not confining her work to the genre, frequently contributed to it:
87:
50:
19:
507:
395:
279:
99:
69:
102:
wrote an essay on "Post-mortem Poetry", in which he remarked that:
65:
315:
Thomas A. Riedlinger, ed. (Michigan State
University Press (1998)
356:
The
Humbler Poets: A Collection of Newspaper and Periodical Verse
86:, and as such continue one of the themes that went into literary
410:"G. Washington Childs" is believed to be a nickname bestowed on
210:
31:
548:, "Narrative Obituary Verse and Native American Balladry", in
289:
284:
39:
35:
150:
203:
Twain's character of "Emmeline
Grangerford", appearing in
375:, Hamlin Lewis Hill, ed. (Univ of Wisconsin Press, 1993;
93:
552:, Vol. 83, No. 327 (Jan. - Mar., 1970), pp. 61-68
38:that commemorate a person's or group of people's
560:
373:Essays on American humor: Blair through the ages
45:In its stricter sense, though, it refers to a
251:And their little souls to the angels flew,—
23:"Their little souls to the angels flew...."
18:
561:
536:), ch. 6, "The Domestication of Death"
217:mocked the obituary poets in his 1874
188:Rise to thy throne of changeless rest,
353:See generally, Slason Thomson (ed.),
249:They planted John and his sister Sue,
247:Under the turf where the daisies grew
140:
525:The Feminization of American Culture
240:— Too true!
238:Trouble the doctor could n't subdue.
236:And then the trouble began to brew,—
332:See generally, James Stevens Curl,
253:— Boo hoo!
13:
334:The Victorian Celebration of Death
206:The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
14:
590:
426:, John Algeo, ed., (Quest, 2003
94:Death poetry in the popular press
68:with descriptions of their happy
57:. The genre consists largely of
550:The Journal of American Folklore
234:John took a bite and Sue a chew,
539:
513:
496:
487:
120:Our little boy we loved so dear
30:, in the broad sense, includes
470:
454:
437:
424:The Letters of H. P. Blavatsky
404:
389:
362:
359:(Jansen McClug &Co., 1886)
347:
326:
302:
179:Ere sin has seared the breast,
1:
295:
129:A tear within a father's eye,
122:Lies sleeping with the dead.
7:
273:
198:
167:that was noticed by Twain.
10:
595:
164:Philadelphia Public Ledger
414:, editor in chief of the
184:Or sorrow waked the tear,
193:In yon celestial sphere!
157:, sometimes called "The
131:A mother's aching heart,
116:Our little Sammy's gone,
55:United States of America
135:How hard it is to part.
133:Can only tell the agony
118:His tiny spirit's fled;
262:and other traditional
219:Out of the Hurly Burly
24:
451:, Nov. 28, 1875, p. 5
449:Daily Alta California
445:The Laureate of Grief
412:George William Childs
268:teenage tragedy songs
213:the genre inspired.
22:
460:"Mrs Sigourney", in
155:G. Washington Childs
49:of popular verse or
416:Philadelphia Ledger
528:(Macmillan, 1998,
400:Post-mortem Poetry
191:
182:
177:
141:The obituary poets
25:
462:The New Englander
434:), Vol. 1, p. 183
586:
579:Victorian poetry
574:Genres of poetry
553:
546:Robert D. Bethke
543:
537:
517:
511:
508:The Little Peach
500:
494:
491:
485:
474:
468:
458:
452:
441:
435:
408:
402:
393:
387:
366:
360:
351:
345:
330:
324:
306:
227:The Little Peach
594:
593:
589:
588:
587:
585:
584:
583:
559:
558:
557:
556:
544:
540:
518:
514:
501:
497:
492:
488:
477:Lydia Sigourney
475:
471:
459:
455:
442:
438:
420:H. P. Blavatsky
409:
405:
394:
390:
367:
363:
352:
348:
336:(Sutton, 2000:
331:
327:
307:
303:
298:
276:
264:narrative verse
252:
250:
248:
239:
237:
235:
201:
196:
190:
186:
181:
169:Lydia Sigourney
143:
134:
132:
130:
121:
119:
117:
96:
74:graveyard poets
62:narrative verse
28:Obituary poetry
17:
12:
11:
5:
592:
582:
581:
576:
571:
555:
554:
538:
512:
495:
486:
482:Go To Thy Rest
469:
453:
436:
403:
388:
361:
346:
325:
309:Julia A. Moore
300:
299:
297:
294:
293:
292:
287:
282:
275:
272:
260:murder ballads
256:
255:
243:
242:
200:
197:
175:
147:Julia A. Moore
142:
139:
138:
137:
125:
124:
109:
108:
95:
92:
83:Night Thoughts
15:
9:
6:
4:
3:
2:
591:
580:
577:
575:
572:
570:
569:Death customs
567:
566:
564:
551:
547:
542:
535:
534:0-374-52558-7
531:
527:
526:
521:
516:
510:
509:
504:
499:
490:
484:
483:
478:
473:
467:
463:
457:
450:
446:
440:
433:
432:0-8356-0836-0
429:
425:
421:
417:
413:
407:
401:
397:
392:
386:
382:
381:0-299-13624-8
378:
374:
370:
365:
358:
357:
350:
343:
342:0-7509-2318-0
339:
335:
329:
322:
321:0-87013-449-3
318:
314:
310:
305:
301:
291:
288:
286:
283:
281:
278:
277:
271:
269:
265:
261:
254:
245:
244:
241:
232:
231:
230:
228:
224:
220:
216:
212:
208:
207:
195:
194:
189:
185:
180:
174:
173:
170:
166:
165:
160:
156:
152:
148:
136:
127:
126:
123:
114:
113:
112:
105:
104:
103:
101:
91:
89:
85:
84:
79:
75:
71:
67:
63:
60:
56:
52:
48:
43:
41:
37:
33:
29:
21:
549:
541:
523:
515:
506:
503:Eugene Field
498:
493:Blair, above
489:
480:
472:
461:
456:
439:
423:
415:
406:
391:
372:
369:Walter Blair
364:
354:
349:
333:
328:
312:
304:
257:
246:
233:
226:
223:Eugene Field
218:
204:
202:
192:
187:
183:
178:
176:
172:
162:
144:
128:
115:
110:
97:
81:
78:Edward Young
44:
27:
26:
520:Ann Douglas
464:, v 25, p.
88:Romanticism
59:sentimental
51:folk poetry
563:Categories
396:Mark Twain
296:References
280:Death poem
215:Max Adeler
100:Mark Twain
76:, such as
225:produced
70:afterlife
344:), ch. 1
274:See also
199:Parodies
159:Laureate
66:mourners
418:. See
323:), p. 6
36:elegies
532:
430:
383:), p.
379:
340:
319:
221:, and
211:parody
40:deaths
290:Elegy
285:Dirge
47:genre
32:poems
530:ISBN
428:ISBN
377:ISBN
338:ISBN
317:ISBN
151:poet
149:, a
466:338
447:",
385:109
80:'s
34:or
565::
522:,
505:,
479:,
422:,
398:,
371:,
311:,
270:.
229::
90:.
42:.
443:"
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
